Mark Zuckerberg gives away 99% of his $45 billion fortune

That’s about $45billion to 'advance human potential' so that his daughter can grow up in a better world

Last week, Mark Zuckerberg’s wife, Dr Priscilla Chan, gave birth to their daughter, but the couple didn’t put the news out until yesterday, when Zuckerberg posted it on Facebook (where else?).

It’s incredible what being solely responsible for a life can do to you. “Your mother and I don’t yet have the words to describe the hope you give us for the future,” Zuckerberg wrote at the start of a letter penned to his newborn, Max. Presumably, it’s this hope for the future that encouraged the Facebook CEO to pledge 99 percent of his Facebook shares to the cause of human advancement with the initial areas of focus to be learning, curing disease, connecting people and building strong communities.

Valued at approximately $45 billion, the largest pledge in history will be donated to the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative over their lifetimes in an effort to give their daughter a better world to grow up in.

We will give 99% of our Facebook shares — currently about $45 billion — during our lives to advance this mission. We know this is a small contribution compared to all the resources and talents of those already working on these issues. But we want to do what we can, working alongside many others.

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is a reflection of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, another philanthropic effort built on a Silicon Valley fortune. Launched in 2000, the Gates Foundation currently has a $44 billion legacy — a couple of bucks shy of the donation pledged by Zuckerberg and Chan. No one’s interested in that rivalry nonsense, though. Melinda Gates replied to the couple’s post, saying “the example you’re setting today is an inspiration to us and the world.”

In a world where powerful people spend ridiculous amouunts of money on trivial things like a birthday bash, it’s heartening to see some people still doing whatever they can to help the less fortunate.